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'3 )

ROME VERSUS RoTHVEN.

UITE unnanounced, without blare of trumpet, without
beat of drum, a mild-appearing, easy-Toing gentleman
'Y'^jJ dropped into the City of Victoria, in the Province of
British Columbia, on the evening of June 29, 1897, He
was a passenger on the incoming boat from Seattle, V\ rxsh.,
U. S. A. Quietly and calmly he stepped ashore and pro-
ceeded to tl;c Victoria Hotel, registered as "V. M.
Ruthven." He had rather a clerical air and scholarly
appearance, but was neither obtrusive nor communicative, so
no one suspected that he was other than an ordinary visitor
on recreation or on pleasure oent. In a few days, however,
there appeared upon the streets hand-bills stating that "V.
M. Ruthven, ex-priest of Rome, apostle of patriotism, will
lecture in A. O. U. Hall, Yates street, Victoria, B. C,, Sun-
day afternoon, July 4th, at 3 o'clock, on : ' Rome the Enemy
of Civil Liberty.'. Father Ruthven will also tell why he left
the Church of Rome; giving many sad personal experiences.
This is a patriotic gospel service for ladies and gentlemen.
Sunday evening, July 4th, at 8 o'clock, for men only! on
• Why I'riests Don't Wed, or Horrors of the Romish Confes-
sional.' Hoys under 17 years of age not admitted. Monday
afternoon, July 5th, at 3 o'clock, for ladies onl)- ! on ' Priests
and Tlieir Victims, or the Woman in the Confessional."
(lirls under 17 \'ears of age not admitted."

With no niggard hand were these hills scattered. In
store and shop, in office and in private house, on quiet avenue
and on busy market place. The information was forced

97I80

PROVINC.AU UBRARV
VICTORIA. B. C.

upon the attention of the people that the mission of llie quiet
mannered Mr. Ruthvcn was to tell thcin of the dangers with
which Rome was threatening the freedom of their country
and the sanctity of their homes.

The lectures were a vast success. The large hall was
filled to overflowing ; many hundreds being imablc to obtain
admission.

On Tuesday morning, July 6th, Mr. Ruthvcn took his
<5eparture from, as unostentatiously as he had made his
entrance into Victoria. His stay was short, but he had made
many friends who urged him to speak again. He expressed
his regret that his itinerary was marked out and tliat he was
compelled to leave, so as to fill an engagement at Nanaimo ;
whence he was to proceed to Vancouver, Westminster, and
other Eastern cities.

Whilst in Victoria Mr. Ruthven met with no opposition,
no contradiction. But ak soon as his back was turned the
local priest, Father Joseph Nicolaye, attacked him in a most
virulent and vitriolic letter published in the Victoria Daily
Colonist, July 7th, 1897. He painted Mr. Ruthven's char-
acter in most lurid colors, but (as was remarked by all who
read the letter) did not deny a single statement made in the
public lectures — :md these statements were strong enough in
all conscience.

But the good Father Nicolaye never made a more
■serious mistake, in the whole course of his ecclesiastical
career, than when he published that attack on Mr. Ruthven.

Simultaneously with the letter of I'riest Nicolaj'e,
special press dispatches appeared in the newspapers of the

United States and Canada containing the most false and
unfounded accounts of the ex-priest's lectures. The Seattle,
(U. S.A.) Post-Jntelli)>cnccr oi ]\x\y 8th, 1897, had the fol-
lowing .

AROUSED TOO LATE.

VICTORIA GROSSLY INSULTED BY AN EX-PRIEST.

•

Ruthven " Exposes the I'riesthood," and Incidentally
Attacks the Women of the Catholic Church — The
(Zommunity Gets Angry at Last, but the Lecturer has
Disappeared — Indictments Pending at Buffalo, N.Y.

[Special dispatch to the Post-Intelligencer. )

Victoria, B.C., July 7 — Victorians as a rule are a phleg-
matic people, slow to think, although prompt enough to act
when once thoroughly aroused. It is to this lethargic char-
acteristic of the community that Victor M. Ruthven, alias Rior-
dan, the renegade and apostate, owes a debt of gratitude. For
if any other community on the Coast had been insulted a»?
Victoria was at hi.s lectures Sunday evening and yesterday
afternoon, the offending lecturer would have been fortunate
indeed to have escaped with his life. As it is, he was not
only endured, but his disgusting sentiments even found
responsive and appreciative listeners, an.i it was not until
after Ruthven had taken the train for Xanaimo to-day that
the better class of the communit)' awoke to the realization of
the outrage that had been put upon the cit\', Ruth\en came
here on Saturday last, announcing himself as an ex-priest
and advertising two lectures, one for men and the other for

women only, at w'.iich he promised to " expose the gross
immorality of the Roman Catholic priesthood."

The address to the men was on the lines already
exhausted by " Father " Slattery, but abounding in lewd-
ness, coarse suggestion and blaspheme, some of the anecdotes
related to a crowded audience bein^; such that they would
not have been tolerated in a brothel. Incidentally he
observed that "here in Victoria I make bold to say not lO
per cent, of your Roman Catholic women are virtuous."
Yet this aspersion upon the fair fame of the city's woman-
hood passed as unnoticed by the audience as the lecturer's
obscenity had been by the police in attendance.

The fact that the tirade of the speaker had influenced a
portion at least of the audience was. apparent at the close of
the lecture, for no Doner had the hoodlum clement left
A. O. U. vV. Hall than they hurried to St. Andrews Roman
Catholic cathedral, only half a block away, and proceeded to
bombard it with .stones hastily .snatched from the roadway,
breaking several of the costly stained glass windows and
bringing the venerable Father Nicolaye to the scene, only to
be assailed with a chorus of vile epithets and threats of per-
sonal violence.

To-day Ruthven left for Nanaimo, where he is an-
nounced to lecture to night and to-morrow. He may carry
out his programme, but it is cjuite po.ssible that the police of
the Coal City may perform their duty better than the
Victoria officers did theirs

The Toronto (Canada) iVeekly Mail aud Empire^ July
8th, 1 89;, .said:

ANTI-CATHOLIC DEMONSTRATION.

Victoria, B. C, July 6. — (Special.)— Ruthvcn, or
Riordan, a strong anti-Catholic, i 'tured here on Sunday and
last night on the alleged immc-ti'itie"? of the Romish priest-
hood. After the Sunday nr*.- .ting the rowdy element in the
audience stoned St Andrew's Pom<in Catholic cathedral,
and hooted and insulted Fat*"er Nicolaye, the white-haired
priest Ruthven has "served time" in the United States,
and has indictments alive in the east against him.

The Victoria Daily Times of July 6, 1897, published
the following letter, written by a nember of Priest Nicolayr's
congregation, one "S. Perry Mills":

THAT INDECENT LECTURER.

To THE Editor : It is to be regretted that a so-called
lecturer, whose name it is unnecessary to mention, arrived in
this city before his record could be made known to those per-
sons who attended his indecent lectures. I have before me a
newspaper containing the names of ministers of the gospel
belonging to the Presbyterian, Baptist and other i'rotestant
denominations, condemning and warning people against this
man.

I am informed that hi? lectures are full of the usual
scurrilous and opprobious la.igaage and inHi:"riminatc abuse,
interspersed with filthy tales about the Catholic clergy and
sisterhoods. The sole object of the lecturer was to obtain
the silver offering at the door, to satisfy the prurient curiosity
of his audience by trying to wound and insult the rcligiou.s
feelings of the Catholi? people of this city and c.xcitc pre-
judices against them, w' ich resulted in an r.ttcmpt by some

ignorant and excitable j^^oplc to injure the Ca^olic
cathedral and thereby 'disturb the order and tranquility of
this city.

" Without the means of knowing right from wrong,
They're always decisive, clear and strong."

.^, Parasites can be found in evejy coipmunity. Ret^iar
tion is no doubt their sob desire, but Catholics expect that
the proper authorities will protect their rights. They stand
for the law that is related to each of them and defines the
rights that they shall enjoy.

It might be well to remind some of those so-called
" Patriots " that thpy have no rights ?is such which do not at
the same time and to the same extent belong to Catholics as
swc;h, to Protestants, Jews and infidels. They can claim
nothing on the score of conscience which they can not
concede to all others.

The city police, as usual, though present at the lecture
were not on hand to prevent the violation of rights and
property.

It is unnecessary to say that the Catholic people revere
ami admire their clergy and as for the sisters, those anoeh
on earth, words cannot express our love and admiration for
them // is consolation to knoiv that ycsus was treated in
like manner.

Victoria, July 6.

And so, according to her ancient methods, did Rome
proceed to demolish her absent enemy. Hut Rome had not
yet quite taken Ruthven's mca.sure. For all his gentle speech

and mildly, quiet manner Ruthven has in him a fighting
strain. As soon as he saw the attacks made upon him he
closed his engagement at Nanaimo^ cancelled all his dates in
eastern cities and returned to Victoria — which was stirred to
its very centre on the appearance of a veritable deluge of
hand bills bearing the following startling announcement :

A.O. il.W. Hall, ii^t$ St, tf!<fORiA. ft.(.

1- 1 / f

-WILL LECTURE-

t ' > ^.

' < A 1 *^ " w ■

3P»r

SUNDAY AFTERNOON, JUL.Y 18th.

3 o'clock, Tb" fA'blfis'AND GENTLEMEN, 6n'

'^Atrocious Te^ebipgs of tl|P pofflisli lonfessional/'

Startling revelations of doctrines and practices Destruc-
tive of the Individual, the Family and the Nation.

Father Ruthven will show that Lying, Theft, Anarchy
and Murder are taught by Romish Confessors, and hereby
challenges Priest Nicolaye or Bishop Lemmens to dispiove
these charges. One hundred dollars are waiting for either of
them who does so. Father Ruthven will admit them to his
platform, and allow them to use their own hand books of
Theology, "Gury;" th? ''Compendium," and the ^' Casus
Conscientiie." They will be treated with courtesy and
absolute fairness. There will be no turning aside from the
questions at issue to indulge in personal abuse or baseless
calumny. Every facility will be afforded them to disprove
the serious indictments brought against their church. This
is a gra'\; question; one affecting the well-being of the nation,
and Father Ruthven is ready to stand or fall on facts.

Sunday Evening, July i8th, at 8 o'clock, for
Men only, on " The Priest, the Woman and the Confes-
sional." Boys under 17 years of age not admitted. This
will be an entirely new lecture, with new facts, new quota-
tions, new illustrations The charges made agkinst the
Church of Rome of teaching practices destructive of life in
its very dawn will be explicity repeated — and the above chal-
lenge holds good for this lecture also.

MOTSDAY AFTETiNOON, JULY I9TH, AT S-O'CLOCK, LA1)I£S
Only, on "Priests and their Victims, or the Woman in the
Confessional." Girls under 17 years of age not admitted.
This also will be an entirely new lecture, with new facts, new
quotations, new illustrations.

ADMISSION TO EACH LECTURE, lOc.
Poors open one hour f)ef9re lecture begins. Come early if you desire a seat.

Then was there consternation in i;he camp of Babylon.
Priest Nicolaye rushed here and there and everywhere, invok-
ing the aid of all and sundr>- to stop the lectures He had
drawn the challenge on himself, by his cowardly attack on an
absent man, he evidently dare not meet the challenge, so the
only retreat open to him was to prevent Ruthven's appear-
ance on the pl.itform of A, 0. U. W. Hall on the afternoon
and evening of July i8th, and the afternoon of July 19th.
Well-known healers of the Vatican boasted that the ex-priest
would not speak as advertised. Prominent members of the
Y. M, 1. spoke signi6cantly of Romanists high in the service
of the State who would '• put a job upon Ruthveii." And
the job was certainly put up, though it did work quite
as the Priest Nicolaye desired.

On Thursday, July 15th, 1897, Joseph Hall of 45
David street, in the Citv of \ictcria. II C, a member of

Priest Nicolayc's congregation, swore out an information
against Ruthven, "for that he, on the 14th day of July,
1897, at the City of Victoria aforesaid, did, vithout lawful
justification or excuse, unlawfully, wickedly, knowingly, wil-
ully and designedly, publicly sell and utter a certain,
indecent and obscene book called 'Crimes of Romish
Priests/ thereby tending to corrupt the morals as well of
youth, as of other liege subjects of our Lady the Queen, and
against the peace of our said Lady the Queen, her Crown
and dignity."

On the strength of this information Ruthven's private
apartments were raided by the police on the night of Thurs-
day, July 15th. Every book in sight was seized and he was
informed tbat there was a warrant for his arrest ; but that the
said warrant would not be served until 10 o'clock next morn-
ing, so as to give him a chance to clear out on the 8:30 am.
boat for the United States. Ruthven quietly answered that
he was not on the run from Rome, and that he would be on
hand at 10 o'clock next morning.

At the appointed time the Sergeant of Police, accom-
panied by one of his subordinate officers, appeared and put
Ruthven under arrest. He was brought before Justices of
the Peace Pearson and Dalby, and, at the request of the
prosecution, remanded until Monday, July 19th. He asked
no one for countenance or assistance ; yet two of the most
prominent business men in Victoria immediately went his bail.
It was fixed at $400. Immediately on his release Ruthven
proceeded to continue the advertising of his lectures as if
nothing unusual had occurred, liut it was to prevent these
very lectures that he was arrested ; so in pursuance of that
end he was, to the amazement of the citizens, re-arrested on
the afternoon of Saturday, July 17th, on two warrants, one

sworn out by Priest Nicolaye, the other by Simon A. Bantlyr
a member of Nicolaye's congregation, and a prominent
*'Y. M. I." Ruthven was. brought before County Court
Judge Harrison, in his capacitj'- of Stipendiary Magistrate,
The following is from the Victoria D(i/7y Times, Saturday
evening, July 17th, 1897:

CRIMINAL LIBEL AND INXITING TO A BREACH
OF THE PEACE ARE CHARGED.

V. M. Ruthven appeared at 2:30 this afternoon before
His Honor County Court Judge Harrison, charged with
criminal libel and inciting a breach of the peace. The
information charging criminal libel is laid by Rev. Father
Nicolaye, and charges Keith Ruthven, alias Victor M.
Riordan, with maliciously intending; to injure Father
Nicolaye and deprive him of his good name by publishing a
false and obscene libel concerning him in his office of a
priest of the Roman Catholic church, whi n obscene matters
are contained in a certain book or pamphlet entitled "Crimes
of Romish Priests," and also in a certain handbill written in
the sense of imputing that the said Father Nicolaye has com-
mitted and is committing acts of gross public and private
immorality and indecency, and has encouraged and is
encouraging others to like acts, well knowing the same to be
false.

The other charge is laid by Simon A. Bantly, who
s%\'ears that Ruthven gave him a handbill, and that he verily
believes the continued distribution of the said handbill and
the holding of said lectures, as in the handbill mentioned,
to-morrow, and the challenge in the handbill to lather
Nicolaye is calculated to produce a breach of the peace.
Gordon Hunter and S. Perry Mills appeared for the prose-

cution, and S. D. Schultz and G. E. Powell for the
defence.

Mr. Schultz, in regard to the criminal libel, asked for
an adjournment, and as his client was already on bail, he
asked that no additional bail be ordered.

The judge mentioned the supposed fact that the accused
was going on with a lecture to-morrow afternoon, and what
good would it do to let the accused in bail if he was going on
with the lecture ? Here in Victoria no religious troubles
had ever arisen as in the east, and what was the u.se of going
on with the same thing to-morrow when the whole matter
could be settled on the trial of the libel charge? If the
accused can prove what he asserts, he has the opportunity in
court of justice, on sworn evidence. A jury is the proper
tribunal for a thing of this sort to come before, and let it be
trieo before them, and not at a Sunday afternoon meeting,
and possibly in a disorderly manner. When counsel ask for
bail they should be prepared to say what course the accused
will take in regard to the proposed lecture to-morrow after-
noon. The court then adjourned for five minutes to give
counsel for the accused an opportunity to consult with their
client about the course he would pursue in regard to the
Sunday lecture.

His Honor stated that he had received a letter from the
justices before whom the first information was laid asking
him, in his capacity as a stipendary magistrate and justice of
the peace, to hear the charge, and that explained his presence
in the case.

After the five minute intermission Mr. Shultz
announced that he was now prepared to go on with the libe

char-Te. and Rev. Father Nicolaye at once took the witness
stand and was examined by Mr. Hunter.

The case was in progress when the Times went to press.

It will be noticed in the above account that "the court
adjourned for five minutes to give counsel for the accused an
opportunity to consult with their client about the course he
would pursue in regard to the Sunday lecture.

In other words, it was very plainly intimated to
Ruthven that if he engaged not to deliver the lectures pro-
ceedings would be quashed then and there.

But Ruthven stood to his guns and, on the re-opening
of the court, quietly an.swered " I will lecture if I have my
liberty and my voice."

In face of this declaration there was nothing for it but to
go on with the trial.

But we will let the " Victoria Daily Colonist^ Sun-
day, July 1 8, 1897,' take up the story here :

WILL STAND HIS TRIAL ON A CHARGE OF

CRIMINALLY LIBELLING FATHER

NICOLAYE.

JUnOE HARRISON ALSO BINDS HIM OVER TO KEEP THE
PEACE FOR FOUR MONTHS.

The troubles over " Father " Ruthven took a new turn
yesterday when he was arrested on a charge of criminal libel,
and also on a charge that his lectures advertised for to-day

«5

were likely to lead to a breach of the peace. The charge of
criminal libel was laid by Father Nicolaye, and in effect was
that Ruthven maliciously intended to injure Father Nicolaye
and deprive him of his good name and reputation by publisii<
ing obscene and defamatory libel contained in a book or
pamphlet entitled " Crimes of Romish Priests," and also in a
certain handbill imputing that Father Nicolaye had encouraged
and committed acts of gross public and private immorality.
The words particularly complained of were "Father Ruthven
will show that lying, theft, anarchy, and murder are taught
by Romish confessors, and hereby challenges Priest Nicolaye
or Father Lemmens to disprove these charges," The charge
also stated that the pamphlet or book entitled "Crimes of
Romish Priests."

The other charge which was laid by Simon Bantly was to
the effect that the handbill circulated calling attention to
Ruthven's lectures was calculated to produce a breach of the
peace, and that ''the said Simon Bantly is afraid that some
bodily injury will be done to Her Majesty's liege subjects in
the cit>- of Victoria,"

Ruthven came before Judge Harrison in the court house at
half-past two to answer to these charges. Mr. S. Perrj- Mills
and Mr. Gordon Hunter appearing for the prosecution and
Mr. S. D. Schultz and Mr. Geo. "owell for the defence.

It was decided to take up the preliminary hearing of the
libel charge first, and Mr. Hunter opened for the prosecution
by reading extracts from the " Crimes of Romish Priests,"
which reflected on the morality of the Roman Catholic clergy,
and also quoted the sentence already given from the handbill.

Mr. Schultz asked that the libel case be laid over til\
Tuesday and tnat no additional bail than that already given

_^^>^

by his client in the case to come on Monday should be de-
manded.

Judge Harrison wanted to know whether in the meantime
it was 'the intention of the accused to defer hi* lecturies
ad\^ertised for Sunday. The libiel charge was more serious
than the one of pubKshing obscene literature, for which the
accused had already given bail. Thcacdused in his handbills
stated that he would show that priests taught crime, and this
the judge thought might be calculated to bring on a breach
of the peace. Ruthvcn claimed he could prove this, and now
here was n opportunity given him of proving his statements
in a court of law. What good, however, cotild be done by
letting him out on bail and yet repeat in a lecture the very
thing complained of. Hitherto there had never been religious
disturbances in Victoria, and it was one of the aims in the
British Empire to see that as far as possible there was no
clashing of religions. When religious passions were roused
there waw no telling where tlicy Would stop.

After a short adjournment to allow Messrs, Powell &
Schultx to consult with their client, it was decided to go on
/ith the libel case

Father Nicolaye was put in the box as the first witness and
examined as to his duties as a priest He gave denials to the
statements in the bills against the prJe.sthood, and gave tes-
timony as to the chastity of priests. The effect of the charges
of sensuality, if they were true, would, the witness said, result
in his being dismissed from the priesthood.

The defence had no questions to ask this witness.

Mrs. Mary Brinkman was put in the box to show that she
had bought one of the pamphlets from Mr. Ruthvcn and that

he had given her a handbill as well. She understood the
statements in the bill to reflect on Father Nicolayeand Bishop
Lemniens personally, and she stated that, as a Roman
Catholic, she had onI\' been taught what was good and moral.

Joseph Hall gave similar testimony to this witness, as also
did Simon Bantly.

The accused upon being asked, declined to say anything at
this stage.

Mr. Powell for the defence held that I'o offence had been
proved. In order to show an offence it was necessary to
prove that there was an absolute definite charge against
Father Nicolaye, and that this had not been proved.

The court refused to take upon himself to saj' that there
was no libel, and therefore he committed the accused for trial.

Next came the information of Samuel Bantly, to the effect
that the lectures advertised on the handbill might lead to a
breach of the peace. After " Father" Ruthven's last lecture
he had found next morning sods and stones up against the
door of the Roman Catholic cathedral, and the handbills be-
ing distributed with charges that Catholic priests taught lying,
stealing and murder might lead to trouble, as people might
get to argument and thence to fighting.

Mr. Schultz asked in cross-examination: "If you were to
prevaricate unwittingly in the witness box, could you be
absolved by a priest for that?"

This question the Court overruled on the ground that it
was in effect questioning whether the oath of a Roman Catholic
was binding, and as long as a man considered his oath binding

it mattered not, under our law, whether he was Christian or
heathen.

Witness in cross-examination said he did not know who
threw the stones he saw at the church door. Tiiere had been
no fighting over the last lecture, but there might if there was
another. He did not personally think Father Ruthven a
dangerous man, nor was he afraid of him.

Mrs. Brankman, the next witness, considered the handbill
an insult to the priesthood and Catholics. .She had bought
one of the pamphlets from the accused, and he had given her
a handbill.

Joseph Hall stated that as a Roman Catholic he considered
the expressions in the handbill and books insults and calcu-
lated to make trouble. The lectures too he thought might
result in a row as Catholics were not likely to stand by while
insults were being uttered.

This completing the evidence for the prosecution the
counsel for the accused asked that the charge be dismissed on
a number of grounds. One was that the prisoner had been
given no opportunity to plead, the charge not hiving been
read to him ; another was that the offence did not come under
the criminal code as a person could only lay an information
when fc.ring bodily harm for himself, his wife or child. It
was also coiitendcd that the warrant of arrest was defective in
that it was not a copy of the information; also that it had not
been shown that anyone'was in personal danger.

In regard to the objection that the charge should have been
read to the accused, the Court thought that the ground was
well taken. After the court mot again the now information

was read n\cv to the .iccusjJ. and he was asked what he had
to say that h^- should not he bouii 1 over to keep the p-'a-c.

To this Mr. Ruth\eii jopliedthat he Iiad been distributing
similar handbills for the last seven years, ind they had never
caused any disturbance. /A' iiitctidcii lo roiiim/t no lii-turh-
(inri\ mid he CDtis-idcrcd that //' other people did intend to eausc
the tro;i/>/e thev <honld Ite (irre<ted and /)onnd ozer, and not him.

Mr. I'ovvcll tiiereupon renewed the objections already
taken, and ar;.^ued. moreover, that the matter was in reality
re^ Jiidieata anil the former information must be treated as
dismissed.

The objections were noted and then the whole of the evid-
enet: on the chari^e was heard o\er again.

Counsel for the defence refrained from cross-examination
of the witnes.ses, relying on the objections i...scd.

, After a long fight between counsel and much hunting up of
authorities the Court decided that Ruthven must give sureties
to be of good behaviour for four months, or in other words
that he would not incite trouble. The bond was the defend-
ant in $500 and two sureties of $350 each. On the charge of
criminal libel l.ie Court could not give bail. -as application
must be made to another judge. Therefore Ruthven spent
the night in jail.

Just after the court adjourned Mr. John Braden, M. P. P.
jumped up in the middle of the court room and announced
to the crowd of spectators. " There will be a meeting to-day
at 3 o'clock at the same place.

This produced applause and i)eople still hung "round
the room f^r some little time till the police were reciU--sted
to clear it.

Ruthven, it will be observed from the forejioitig, spent
the night ni jail. Yes. that was part of the plan. The
counsel for the prosecution talked against time so as to
keep the court in session until after 12 p. m. on Saturday
night This brought them into Sund.iy morning, and as
Judge Harrison, in his capacity of committing magistrate,
had no jurisdiction to grant bail on Sunday, they fully
expected the ex-priest would lie in jail until Monday, and
that so the lectures would be prevented. Hut their plans
failed. A mass-meeting of citizens was called for Sunday
afternoon and steps were taken which resulted in Ruthven
being bailed out at seven o'clock on Sunda>' evening. His
bail was fixed at $2,000, and at least twenty prominent and
substantial citizens came forward to go upon his bond.
Straight from the jail to the A. O. L'. W. Hall, unsliaven
and unshorn, marched the indomitable Ruthven ; where an
ovation waited him, such as has never been accorded another
man in/i Victoria. Standing room was at a premium long
before the meeting opened, and out upon the streets the
pcoplej gathered to hear the ex-priest's voice as it came
through the open windows. A committee was appointed to
take subscriptions for the " Liberty Defen.se Fund," out of
which Ruthven's legal expenses will be paid ; and another
mass-meeting was called for Sunday evening, July 25th, to
take steps towards contradicting the false " press dispatches '
.sent out by the friends of Rome. At that meeting, which
was composed of at least eight hundred of the business, pro-
fessional and working men of Victoria, the following resolu-
tions were passed unanimously and with the wildest possible
enthusiasm — for them.selvcs they speak and need no comment.

" Whereas at Victoria, British Columbia, and within the
the A. O. U. W. Hall, there, on the twenty-fifth day of Julyr

1897. a grand miss meetinj^ of citizens assemblet! and was
constituted a committee to encjuirc into certain char{j[es
levelled against the people and the police of the City of
Victoria, H- ('., in connection with the alleged attack an St
Andrew's Roman Catholic Cathedral ; alleged in:;u!t, threat
and violence offered to Priest Nicolaye ; an alleged indiffer-
ence, incompetence and neglect of the police authorities of
Victoria, H. C, on the night o*" July 4th, 1897;

"And whereas John Braden, M.l'.P. was unanimously
elected Chairman, and Mr. Alexander C. Howe, Secretary.

"And whereas, in an editorial published in the Victoria
Daily Coloni.^l, July 6th, (897, occurs the following passage:

•' ' We learn with regret that persons returning from a
so-called lecture on Sundny disgraced themselves by stoning
the Roman Ci'tholic Church. VVc had not supposed that
there were in Victoria persons so lost to all sense of decency.
It is surprising that such a thing could have taken place
without the knowledge of the police.'

"And whereas, in a letter, under the caption 'That
Indecent Lecturer,' over the signature ' M,' written by S.
Perrj' Mills, a member of the Roman Catholic Church, and
published in the Victoria Daily Times, July 6th, 1897,
occurs the following passage :

"*1. ; City police, as usual, though present at the
lecture, w ,re not on hand to prevent the violation of the
rights of property.'

" And whereas, in a special press dispatch published in
The Weekly Mail and Emfire, Toronto, Canada, July 8th,
1897, occurs the following passage :

*" Ruthven, a strong anti-Catholic, lectured on Sunday
and last iiij^ht on the alleged immoralities of the Romish
Priesthood, After the Sunday meeting the rowdy element
in the audience stoned St. Andrew's Roman Catholic
Cathedral and hooted and insulted Father Nicolaye, the
white-haired priest'

"And whereas, in a special press dispatch in the Seattle
Posl-JntcUigcnccr, Seattle, Wash.. L'.S. A., July 8th, 1897,
occur the following passages :

. ' " The fact that the tirade of the speaker had influenced
a portion at least of the audience, was apparent at the close
of the lecture, for no sooner had the hoodlum element left
A. O. U. VV. Hall than they hurried to St. Andrew's Roman
Catholic Cathedral, only half a block away, and proceeded
to bombard it with stones hastily snatched from tlic road-
way, breaking several of the costly stained windows and
bringing the venerable Father Nicolaye to the scene, only to
be assailed with a chorus of vile epithets and threats of per-
sonal violence,

"'To-day Ruthven left for Nanaimo, where he is
announced to lecture to-night and to-morrow. He may
carry out his programme, but it is quite passible that the
police of the Coal City may perform their duty better than
the Victoria officers did theirs."

"And whereas, after full, complete and official enquiry,
it has been incontestibly established that there was no such
attack on St. Andrew's R. C. Cathedral, or on any other
house or property of the Roman Catholic Church, and no
such insults, threats or violence offere'd to Priest Nicolaye or
to any other priest or person of the Roman Catholic Church ;

'' Therefore be it resolved :

•'(i) That this meeting declare that the above men-
tioned charges derogatory to the conduct and character of a

■n

large section of the Protestant population of the City of
Victoria are without foundation in fact.

" (2) That the above mentioned charges of injury to St
Andrew's Roman Catholic Cathedral are without foundation
in fact.

" (3) That the above charges of insult, threat and vio-
lence to Priest Nicolaye are without foundation in fact.

" (4) That the charges against the loyalty and efficiency
of the police of Victoria, B.C., are without foundation in fact

"(5) That the astonishment and regret of this meeting at
the failure of the Roman Catholic authorities to deny and
contradict these false and unfounded charges be herein
expressed.

" (6) That Father Ruthven has the deepest sympathy,
the fullest support and the hearty co-operation of this meet-
ing in his fearless and manful fight for liberty of conscience
and free speech.

'* And be it further '-esolvcd :

" (7) That copies of these resolutions be given to Father
Ruthven and to the Chief of the Victoria police, and sent to
the Victoria Colonist, Times and Province, and to the news-
papers of Canada and the United States, with a request for
their publication.

' ^ W A. C. HOWE. Secretary.

" Victoria, B.C., and within the A. O. U. W. Hall, the
twenty-fifth day of July, 1^97."

But the real fight to a finish between Rome and
Ruthvcn came off when the trial on the obscene literature
charge came up. In it Rome was badly beaten ; retiring
from the arena demoralized, discomforted, and discredited
for all time in the eyes of the people of British Columbia.
It is worthy 01 remark that the same witnesses : Hall,
Bantley, and Mary Brinkman appear in each case.

On Thursday morning, July 22nd, 1897, within the
Police Court, Victoria, British Columbia, before Magistrate
Farquhar Macrae, after two adjournments, commenced the
trial of Victor M. Ruthvin, ex-pnest of Rome and public
lecturer, on a charge of circulating indecent ''terature.

The charge was brought by Joseph Hall, who admitted
on the witness stand that he was acting under the advice rnd
by the instructions of Priest Nicolaye, the administrator of
the diocese and the ecclesiastic in command of Romish affairs
during the absence of Bishop I.cmmens from British
Co'umbia.

The following is an exact copy of the information sworn
to by Hall, after several amendments asked for by the
counsel for the prosecution, S. Perry Mills and Gordon
Hunter. These amendments were inserted in a desperate
effort to bolster up a lamentably hopeless case.

" Information and complaint for an indictable offence.

" Canada,

" Province of British Columdia,

" County and City of Victoria.

"This information and complaint of Joseph Hall, of 43
David street, in the Cit}' of Victoria, Province of British
Columbia, taken this 15th day of July, in the year of Our

L( rd, one thousand eight hundred and ninety-seven, before
the undersigned, one of Mtr Majesty's Justices of the Peace
in and for the said County of Victoria, wlio saith that Victor
Michael Ruthven of the Victoria Hotel, in the cit" of
Victoria, to wit : on divers days, between th? 3rd and 15th
days t,f July. 1897, in the City of Victoria, without lawful
justification or excuse, unlawfully, wickedly, knowingly,
wilfully and designedly, did publicly sell and ut.er a certain
indecent and obscene book called 'Crimes of Romish
Priests,' and which is hereunto annexed to this information,
Marked 'A'; thereby tending to corrupt the morals as well
of youth as of other liege subjects of our Lady the Queen,
and against the peace of our said Lady the Queen, her crown
and dignity.

JosEPEi Hall.

" Sworn before me the day and year first above men-
tioned at Victoria.

f —'— )
'* E. Pe.\R.SON, -• SEAL J. P."

S. Perry Mills and Gordon Hunter were counsel for the
prosecution.

Mr. Archer Martin conducted the defense, and, in the
words of an able editorial published i.i T/w Pror/mr, }u\y
31st, 1897, *' he handled his case in masterly style from start
to finish, and demonstrated to the satisfaction of the magis-
trate, by comparison with standard literary works, that the
book was not obscene, and the charge was finally dismissed."

The case was called at 10 a.m., and the first witness
sworn was the INFORMER, Joseph Hall. ; ^ ir i. : !

V\'itness sworn.

'* My name is Joseph Hall I am a manner ion dry
land). I live at 43 David street, in the City of Victoria,
Province of British Columbia. I purcha.sed the book
attached to the information marked " A " and entitled
'Crimes of Romish Priests,' from the defendant. I bought
it from him in his private room, his bedroom, room 63 in
the Victoria Hotel. I paid 25c. for it. Simon A. Bantly,
the cigar maker, told me where to find the room. He told
me the number of the room.

Mr. Martin — " Who sent you to buy the book ? "

This seemed a simple and a fair enough que.stion. and
one which was entitled to an immediate answer. But a
bombshell suddenly dropped within the witness bo.x could
not have more completely demoralized Joseph Hall, dry-land
mariner and Papist informer, than did this straightforward
question — '' Who sent you to buy the b(x>k ? " Hall turned
pale beneath his black and tanned comple.xion. He faced
around squarely towards S. Perry Mills and, raising the
yellow of his pole-cat eyes towards that Bnrrister-at-Law,
mutely appealed for some sign — informers usually do require
a sign when they are taken outside the lines of their prepared
recitation — but the eyes of the Court were on S. Perry Mills,
and he waved that basilisk gaz.e aside Cast off by his friend
and mentor in that moment of sore temptation and of dire
distress, INFORMER Hall threw despairing glances on the
floor, towards the ceiling, to the right and to the left ; whilst
oft-repeated, like the voice of doom, came that simple ques-
tion " Who sent you to buy the book ? "

For Gawd's sake gi-me a chair, I'm 'wake," moaned the
ancient mariner. A chair was given him and he was invited

by the ever-courteous Magistrate Macrae to seat himself, to
compose his pcturbed feelings, to bid his beating heart be
still, and answer Mr, Martin's question.

" Who sent you to buy the book ? "

^'Oh! oh! Gi- me a drink, I'm burning wid the drute,*'
screamed the jealous custodian of " the morals, as well as of
youth as other liege subjects of our Lady the Queen." The
water was, after a delay of at least fifteen minutes, procured.
The glass was grasped convulsively in the trembling hands of
the nervous navigator. Raised to his flap like lips, the cool
ing liquid di.sappeared down that awful mouth — that mouth
so like the gulf of Mexico.

" Who sent you to buy the book ? ""

" Pon me sowl I'll niver tell o^/' snarled this marine
Anthony Comstock.

" You >Mfis/ answer the question,' came from the magis-
terial lips.

" Who sent you to buy the book ? "

"Oh, Blessed Virgin 1— Oh, Holy Mother !— Oh, Saint
Patrick, help me! — I'm destride intoirely — I'm sick — I have
a pain — I can nivirtell-oo who sint metobuy dat misfortinate
book. '

*' Who sent you to buy the book ? "

** Wather ! — Wather ! — in the name of blessed Pether,
wather, wather, me inthrails are blazing — Wather! — Wather!

Again the court ordered a cooling draught for the suffer-
ing vagabond upon the witness stand. Again the Gulf of
Mexico was flooded, x . :'^;i i y,y^.',:.,.^:.\.:----':;K::^^..,'.-k,,-.t,^^,„,-..,.-..

" Who sent you to buy the book ? "

One last wild look towards Mills, one last silent petition
to all the Saints in all the calendars for pardon, and then
from the parched and twitching lips of Joseph Hall, mariner,
43 David Street, City of Victoria, B.C., came forth a sound
like to the sorrowing confession of a long-lost soul, and that
sound to the astonished court did say — * '

. "Fathkr Nicolaye!"

I
I

•' Father Nicolaye told me about the book. In conse-
quence of what Father Nicolaye told me / ;:r/// f''i{^^ away
and got the book. I brought it straight hack to Father
Nicolaye at the Bishop's Palace. S. Perry Mills was there.
I left the book with F'ather Nicolaye I ha\e heard of
Father York of San Francisco. I know F'ather Vorkc. He
has a brother heie, one Frank Yorke, a stevedore. Father
Yorke is a brother-in-law of Chief Justice Davie. '

Here Mr Martin rested, much to the relief of the suffer-
ing, thirsty Hall, who staggered blindly from the witness
stand ; and moaning for " m.ercy, mercy on me poor sow], "
was led by sympathising members of the " thru " church to
the outer air.

The court then adjourned till 2:30 p.m.

Is it a breach of charity to brand this witness as a liar?
Read the information sworn to by him. Mark his admissions,
admissions wrung with infinite difficulty from his unwilling
lips, admissions that he bought the book under directions from
Father Nicolaye; that he went rig /if azvay from Father
Nicolaye to procure the book ; that after he had procured it
he brought it straight hack to Father Nicolaye ; that he left

I
f

]

the book with Father Nicolaye. Consider the impossibility
of his having read the book, under these circumstances, and
then ask : " Could that man have been honest and truthful
when he swore out that information ? "

At 2:30 p.m. Thursday, July 22nd, 1897, the court
resumed the hearing of the case of Hall zrrs/ts Ruthven;

Mary Brinkman was the next witness called.

" ( . I

"I lives at 77 Discovery street. I'm a dacent married
woman. My husband is a thram-car motorneer. I called on
(Icfindint in his private room, room 6^ Victoria Hotel, on
July 14th, 1897. Hall, the pravious witness tould me where
to find defindint. I'm a relation of HalT.s. We are cusings."'

This information was elicited in answer to a question
suggested by the remarkable facial resemblance between
Joseph and Mary. It is a peculiar style of beauty which
marks the Hall family.

" I knocked at defindint's dure, his bed-room dure
modest Mary Ikinkman) and w?s told to come in. I axt
him for the '' Dodger.'" I wanted the " Dodger." Defindint
said he wouldn't gie me the " Dodger." The meeting was
a private wan, in the bedroom, when I axt for the "Dodsjer '■■
Defindint didn't gie me the ''Dodger." "When I couldn't
get the " Dodger " I bought a book from him. The title of
the book was "Crimes of Romish Priests." I recognize
' Exhibit D ' as being the book I bought. I put my name
on it about tree minutes after I bought it. I put my name
on it when I got to my destination. My destination was the
Priests' hou.se on Yates street. When I got there I gev the
book to Father Nicolaye. I left it wid Father Nicolave. ' -

3>o

When aslvcd if she ever read the book the modest Mary
Hrinkman became very restive and would not answer until
she had been repeatedly warned by the magistrate.

" I never read the book. I saw the title " Crimes of
Romish Priests," and that was enough for me. 1 knew it
was a bold bad book when it had such a title. '

Here Mr. Martin handed the book to witness and asked
her to read the title aloud.

Mary hardly expected that she would be subjected to
such a severe intellectual test. Hut the court compelled sub
mis -ion. and she took the book, darting a most vitriolic glare
at counsel for the defense. But it was easier to take the
book than to read its classic title page. The four words,
'• Crimes of Romish Priests," printed in large capitals, were
rattled off glibly enough, but when she came to a sentence
printed in ordinary nonpareil Marys voice faltered and grew
husky, she tried and failed, and tried and failed a second
time, and then tried back again, and not until she had received
considerable assistance from Mr. Martin did she succeed in
deciphering a short sentence which an average eight-year old
child, educated in the public schools, would read at a single
glance.

Mary is evidently not only a member of the *' thru
church." as she testified in her own sweet way, but a gradu
ate of the Parochial School. Her literary attainments shed
lustre on the .system so dear to Rome. But we must remem-
ber that she is a great hand at the Catechism, and a con-
noiseur in choice brands of holy water. , , * . ,,, ,

No comment is needed on her evidence — S//e never /rar/
f//r book — and yet she comes boldly forv/ard to testify on oath

that it is " indecent and obscene, thereby tendin^^ to corrupt
the morals as well of youth as of other liege subjects of our
Lady the Queen — and aj^ainst the peace of our said Lady t'c
Oueen. her Crown and dignity,"

Oh. the fine touch of the unseen hand of Nicolpye.

Simon A. Bantly was the next witness called. Simon
has become known to fame as he •■moral Mr. Hantly," the
chief mover," after Xicolaye and Mills, in this action to con-
serve "the morals as well of youth as of other liege subjects
of our Lady the Queen " He is very sensitive and easily
shocked, and his truthfulness is on a par with his modesty.
I fe testified as follows :

" Mv name is Simon A. Bantlv. 1 am a cigar maker
My place of business is at 155 Fort street. \'ictoria I reside
there. On July 14th I called on defendant at his private
room— room 63, Victoria Hotel, 1 told him I belonged to a
secret society. I pretended friendliness to him. I pretended
to take an interest in his work. 1 pskcd him for the " l^ye-
Opener." He said he had no such book I then asked him
for "Crimes of Romish I'riests." He gave it to me. Im
mediately on securing the book I went straight to the New
York saloon. I signed my name on the book in the saloon.
1 stayed in the saloon about two minutes I went straight
from the saloon to the priests' house on Yates street. I
found Father Nicolaye waiting for me there. S. Perrj- Mills
and Jo.seph Hall were also there (and the compiler of this
book is certain that the Devil was not far off. 1 It was I who
sent Hall to defendant's room for the book which he secured.
We all talked about the book. I .stayed with them about 15
minutes I then went away and left the book with Mills in
the priests' house. I am a Roman Catholic and a mem! cr
of the Y. M I.; so also are other witnesses in this case."

There was considerable difficulty uitii this witness. He
^avc three contrrdictory accounts of his movements from the
time he left Ruthven's room to the time when he ga\e the
book to Mills. The abo\e statement was the one he finally
decided to abide by.

Mark the pilt^rimage of this fellow Hantl)- from room 63
to the saloon, and from the saloon to Father Nicolaye, and
t lat pilgrimage was appropriate enough ; for Rum and Rome
have always gone together. Mark the careful signing of the
name, just as in the cases of those lovely cousins Jo.seph and
Mary, who testified before him. Mark the time the book
was in his possession, enabling him by a careful and conscien-
tious perusal to swear, in a Court of Justice, that it is an
"indecent and obscene book, thereby tending to corrupt the
morals .-'s well of youth as of other liege subjects of our Lady
the Queen." Mark his connection with the "////'/^ Cluinh^
and the Y. M. I. Remember Mr. Ruthven's assurance that
Bantly ropre.sented him.self as a friend and an Orangeman, and
then say what words arc sufficiently strong to condemn the
treacherous, the infamous conduct of Simon A. Bantly, cigar
maker of i 55 Fort street, communicant of the Romish church,
and member of the secret Romish .society — Mie Y.M I.

After the moral Mr. Bantly had effaced him.self from the
sight of a disgusted public, the court adjourned until Saturday
morning, July 24th, at 10 o'clock.

Saturday morning, July 24th, 10 o'clock — The adjourned
case of Hall zv. Ruthven was taken up before Magistrate Far-
quhar Macrae.

J. W. Walker, Sergeant of Police, was the first witness
sworn.

My name is J. W. Walker. 1 am a sergeant of the
Victoria police. I know defendant by sight. I executeil a
search warrant at his room, at the Victoria Hotel, room 63.
on the 15th, of July at 10 p.m. I was accompanied inside
the room by Officer Perdue. I showed defendant the war-
rant and told him that S. Perry Mi'ls was outside. I said
that Mills came to see the warrant executed. Defendant
then asked that Mills be brought in, as he wanted Mills to be
satisfied that there was a full and honest search. I sent
Officer Perdue out for Mills. Mills refused to come in.
When I showed defendant the warrant he may have said,
"take all your warrant calls for." On the return of Officer
Perdue defendant expressed his disgust for Mills and im-
mediately ojjened out his satchels and his bureau drawer. I
seized 690 copies of " Crimes of Romish Priests " (afterwards
the sergeant corrected this statement to 790 copies 1 and all
the other books in sight. I gave defendant a receipt for
them. The other books seized are contained in Exhibit
" J. 6." Their titles are:

1. "Jesus Christ is God," by Rev. Walter Elliot.

2. " Who can forgive sins," by Rev. Patrick Danehy.

3. " Purgatory," by Rev. Henry A. Brann, D. D.

4. " How Christ founded the Church," by Rev. V. Jas.

Iv. Meagher.
; 5 "Church or Bible," by Rev. Arnold Damen, S.J.

6. " Americas Crisis," by Uriah Smith.

7. "Thoughts for the Candid," by J. N. Andrews.

" The first five are published by the " Catholic Truth
Society." I am not prepared to say that they are indecent
and obscene books My warrant only called for indecent and
obscene books. I am not competent to say whether or no
*' Crimes of Romish Priests " is an indecent and obscene

book I am not prepared to say that '* l*iir^.'it(.r\- " is an
indecent book or an obscene place. It may be. I am an
Orany;eman and take no stock in l'ur<fatory. I do not be-
long to the " Hantly Orani^e Lodije." I never heard of such
an Orange Lodge before. It is a new one to me. When I
seized the books the defendant remarked that 'the Chief
Justice was coming pretty low." I dont know what led up
to that remark. Defendant did not obstruct the search in
any way. He .seemed anxious tc make it as complete as
possible.' When I took the books he .said to me . ' Uon.t you
want to take me too?' I answered, 'No, not nuiv' 1 knew
there was a warrant for his arrest at that time. Mills had it
in his pocket. He showed it to me two hours before I seized
the books He showed it to me at S o'clock, when we first
went to the hotel and could not find Ruthven. Mills wanted
us to break open Rutlnen's bedroom door. Hoth Officer
Perdue and I refused to break open Ruth v en's door. Mr.
Bj'rne, the proprietor of the hotel, to!'. Mills he would make
it hot for him if he broke open the door. We then went
awa)- and Mills had the time for the •. . -cution of the warrant
extended. We returned at lO o'clock and Ruthven was in
his room. When I came out of Ruthven's room with the
books Mills handed me the warrant for Ruthxen's arrest and
said ' Don't execute this until ten o'clock to-morrow morn-
ing as wc want to frighten Ruthven out of town. We will
• get word to him that he will be arrested in the morning and
then he will run away to the United States on the eight-
thirty boat, or to Nanaimo on the eight o'clock train. We
want to get quit of him.' I arrested Ruthven at ten o'clock
next morning. He was cxj ecting me. He did not seek to
avoid arrest. He said to me ' (jood morning Sergeant, you
see I am not (vi the rim from Rome.' Mills was mistaken
in his ir.an ; Ruthven did not take the boat."'

Here Gordon Hunter tried to shake the damaginjr
charges of Sergeant Walker against liis colleague Mills, hut
onl>' succeeded in bringing nut a more emphatic statement
than before. Mills told me not to execute the warrant until
ten o'clock the next morning as he wanted the defendant to
clear out on the boat.

This concluded the testimony of Police-Sergeant
Walker, and it was certainly a revelation to the good people
of Victoria. They then and there saw that Milh, the council
for the prosecution, the member of the fhni r/inrr/i, who
took counsel with Hall and Hantly and Nicolaye in the
Priests' house on Yates street, had brougiit the laws of the
land into ridicule ; had trampled under foot the honor and
the dignitx- of the Crown ; had treated with contempt Her
Majesty's warrant "forthwith to apprehend" an alleged
criminal ; and had corrupted an officer of police in the execu-
tion of his duty. Had Sergeant Walker thrashed Mills
within an inch of his mi.serablc life when he bade him hold
back the execution of that warrant, he would have only done
his duty as a citizen, an officer, and a .subject of the Queen.

After Sergeant Walker's testimony the court adjourned
until lo o'clock on Monday morning, July 26th, 1897.

On Monday morning, July 26th, 1897, at 10 o'clock,
was resumed the further hearing of the case of Hall versus
Ruthven, before Magistrate Farquhar Macrae, in the police
courtjat Victoria, British Columbia

The first witness called was Edward J. Blaquiere.

" My name is Edward J. Blaquiere. I live at 221 Cook
street. I drive a baker's cart. I deliver bread for the
Dominion Bakery. — (We hope the bread is not as crooked as

Edward). I first saw defendant when he lectured on the
Confessional in A. O, U. W. Hall. There was a large
crowd of men in the hall. The seats were all taken and the
standing room exhausted. There was a silver collection at
the door. The man at the door told me to put my ofiferin«T
on the table. When I found that it was a voluntary contri-
bution I ONLY PUT DOWN FIVE CENTS.— (Ah, these noble
five-cent men, these NiCKLE-NlcoL-men). I went to
defendant's room, his private room, room No. 67^ at the Vic-
toria Hotel, on the 14th of July. I asked him for the
'Eye-Opener.' He said he had no such book. When f
asked him again whether he could not even lend me a copy
of the ' Eye-Opener,' he looked very hard at me and said
'Are you straight?' I answered 'Yes, I am,' but really I
was not straight. 1 was laying a trap to catch him. I told
him that he could trust me as I was a Presbyterian. He
answered ' If you are a Presbytersan the Shorter Catechism
will suit you better than the ' Eye-Opener.' He offered me a
copy of the Shorter Catechism. I did not take it. I had no
use for it. T am not a Presbyterian. I am a Roman Catho-
lic as a fact. When I told defendant that I was a Presby-
terian I TOLD A LIE. I TOLD THE LIE SO AS TO TRAP HIM.
Bantly sent me to trap him. I deliver bread to Father
Nicolaye (poor man, no wonder he cultivates a pea-green
complexion.) 1 am a member of the Y. M. I.' the Y.M.I,
is a secret society composed exclusively of Roman Catholics.
Bantly is a Y.M.I. I talked with Mills about the lecture
and the book. Ruthven said that ' Crimes of Romish
Priests' was a reliable list of some of the abominable crimes
committed by Roman Catholic priests (and Ruthven says so
still.) I again admit that I LIE!> to Ruthven so as to trap
HIM."

2>7

Assuredly the t/iru church ought be proud of her
children, self-confessed liars, bogus Orangemen, pretended
Presbyterians. But she is consistent — is this thru Church.
Always has she condemned, cursed and prescribed individual
Christian men and vvonicn who dared to call their «ouI.i their
own. Always has she anathematized societies, such as the
Masonic and the Orange ; societies filled with the best and
noblest men within the borders of the Empire. Whilst the
smiles, approval on and uses for her own base ends the thugs,
the ruffians o'" t'^ie murderous Clan-na gael and the lying
Y. M. I.

Liar Klaquierc was the star witness, and his e\idence
ended the case for the prosecution.

On permission being granted by the Magistrate, Gordon
Hunter made a few disjointed, incoherent and altogether
irrelevant remarks. He succeeded in still further exposing
the fatuit} and imbecility of the politico-religious organization
which endea\ored to stop free speech, to prevent honest ex-
posure, and which brought the laws of British Columbia into
contempt. We can never be persuaded that Gordon Hunter's
intellectual acumen and brilliant eloquence will raise him to
the wool -sack ; though freel}' admitting him to be a very
fitting counsel and attorney for Father Nicolaye anc' the
W M. I,

When, to the intense relief of everybody, Hunter's ra.sp-
ing voice ceased to jar upon their nerves, Mr. Archer Martm
rose to make the addres-- for the defense. It was able, it was
clear, it "/as eloquent, it was convincing. Ii\' quotations
from "Hallam," '' Fielding,' the "Decameron" "Kipling,"
''Hardy,' " Flanbert," "Sterne," "Swift," "Shakespeare,"
"Rabellais" and many other standard authors, Mr. Martin

not only paralyzed the counsel for the prosecution by his
evident familiarity with a broad range of high-class literature,
but he impressed Magistrate Macrae with the fact that
"Crimes of Romish Priests" — far from "tending to corrupt
the morals as well of youth as of other liege subjects of our
Lady the Queen " — was in every sense fitted to take its place
amongst these long-tried and accepted classics.

On Mr. Martin resuming his seat amid the suppressed
applause of the assemblage, Magistrate Farquhar Macrae
delixered himself as follows :

'• During the last fifteen \-ears of my official career, this
is the first case which has provoked comment from the peo
pie within the court room whilst the court was sitting.
There has been considerable excitement attending the b.car-
ing of this case. On two occasions I have been compelled
to repiess audible expressions of feeling. But without fear
or favor I have sat and listened to the evidence — and with-
out tear or tavor will I now render my decision. Before
doing so. however, I would beg of yoi;, when I ha\ c closed
wy remarks, not to make an}' sign of opproval or disap-
proval until \'ou have reached the outside of the courtroom.

"I .\M OF THE Ol'INION, .MTKK HHARIXC TEIE
EVIliEXCt;, TH.VT I SIIOULn \OT SEND riU.S MAX IT FOR
TKIAL.

•■TliE CASE IS TIIKKFFOKE DISMFSSEP
.MAN IS FKEE."

AXn THIS

Hn the rendering of this dc ision the niagis'.iate's v ords
of \'" rning v.en^ 'irgotten and clu'cr on cheer went up for
Mr. Ri'thvcn anrl his able ci)\insel, Mr. Archer Martin.

wmmmmmmmim

mmmm

But the end is not yet. Mr. Mills will now be called
upon to explain on what grounds he made the laws of British
Columbia subservient to the private spleen of Papist Priests ;
to show "'diy he suppressed and concealed a Queen's warrant;
and to enlighten the criminal courts on what precedent he
undertook to hold up the British Criminal Code as ROME'S
" Bog IE- Man."

Now the question naturally suggests itself: why should
Priest Nicolaye move heaven u.id earth, and the other place
too, to stop Ruthven from lecturing? An all-sufficient
answer is given by the following " facts for the consideration
of Protestants," taken from the e.x-priest"s public utterances.
He now, as before, challenges Priest Nicolaye, or any other
priest or bishop, to deny and disprove them. The quota-
tions are from " (Jury,' tlie hand-book of moral theology
used to-day by all priests, and all students for the priesthood,
all the world over. into two parts it is divided, viz :

T. The "Compendium,"" whic'i i- the doctrinal treatise.

U. Ti^c " Ca'^us Jonsctentia," which is a list of cases or
ex im pies ari^^ing from the above.

Facts tor the consideratiDn of Prc^testants ;

1st. " \\ here there is no express will or direct intention
to transgress there is really no transgression."

— (fii \\ CoiUpcndiuin^ j.

In other words every delinquent i-;held as being rnorall)-
blameles-;, unles-< he had an F..\ria:ss -xrEXTiiXX to ommit
the exact indiviilua! dclinqucn y with ■.>.hicl; he is chapoJ.

Example from the " Casus Coiiscienti;e :"

" Blazius, wishing to injure his enemy Caius, resolves to
shoot his horse. He fails to hit the horse but kills a cow be-
longing to "(tm, which was quietly lying behind the hedge.

J^tcstiuH.- Rlazius required to make restitution ?

Ans7i'er. — No. Not for the horse, which escaped] Not
for the cow, since he did not INTEND to injure it. Nor even
if the cow belonged to Caius is Hlazius to be held responsible,
since TH.AT PARTICUL.ar I.O.SS was unforsee."

This lesson has been taken well to heart by the Irish
•' Moonlighters," who have been well indoctrinated on the
subtle shades of intention by their blackguard priests. It is
so simple a matter to start out with the express zvill and
direct intention of mutilating some one particular beast and
making a mistake by the light of the moon, to mutilate or
kill ever)' other beast on the farm, or in the barn, except that
identical one. By such convenient mistakes "Ould Ireland"'
is being constantly avenged, landlords and obnoxious neigh-
bors arc being constantly liara5;sed and injured, poor helpless,
dumb animals are being constantly mutilated in the most
shocking manner, and all the while the sons of the thru
church hold themselves, and arc held by their devilish con-
fessor, as morally blameless.

2nd. "Mental reservation is an act of the mind twisting

or restricting words into another than the natural or the

obvious sense."

— Gur\\ Con:pendiuni, 2o6\

•' It is lawful If) use mental reservation even with an

oath."

— Gurv Compendium, /., ^<:f.2.

Examples from the Casus Conscicntta.*. " Alfred, carry-
ing dutible goods, to the question of the Customs Officer
whether^ "he^ Carries any thftig liable to duty, replies no."
Question — Does Alfred sin against the truth, ? Answer —
Alfred does not sin against the truth; for to say ' I carry noth-
ing liable to duty ' is as if he said ' I carry nothing which I
am bound to manifest, — your duty is to search, not ask
questions. ' We trust this word to the wise will be sufficient
for our local Customs Officers.

" Bridget, having committed . adultery, being questioned
by her suspicious husband, answers that she has not broken
her marriage vows. Question — Is Bridget guilty of false-
hood.? Answer — Bridget is not guilty of falsehood, i. If
she has been to confession (after the sin and before th'6
question) she can boldly answer, " I am innocent of such a
crime, " for the priest's absolution clears her conscience and
makes her no longer chargeable with the sin. With an oath
therefore she can assert her innocence. Whether or not she
has been to confession she can explicitly and directly deny
the sin, if, when she says '^ I have not committed adulte-y ''
.she mentally, adds * such as I am going to reveal to you. '

A satisfactory arrangement possibly for Bridget, but
hardlv so for the husband. And how it suits the confessor who
may be inclined to take advantage of Bridget. Sin and
confess and no sin is there. Indeed so commonly do the
holy fathers of other mens children avail themselves of this
little arrangement that of it, Liguori, Arch- Bishop Kenrick
and other Romish Theologians make special mention.

3rd. " Secret compeasation is the recovery of a debt by
the invasion of another's property."

— Gnry, Comfcnuium, 284,

It is just and lawful if it satisfy the requisite conditions :

I. If servants accept an inadequate wage, or if
burdened with work not their own, they may have recourse
to secret compensation.

— Gury, Compendium, 285.

2. If a servant's ordinary duties be increased, he or sha
can secretly take compensation, the amount of which may be
left to their own discretion.

— Gury, Compendium, 285,

' 3. A man does not sin who compensates himself witliout
appealing to the law, even though he can conveniently do so.

— Gury, Compemiium, 285.

Comment would simply spoil this precious teaching of
the thru church. But it suggests the advisability of keeping
a careful inventory of the assets on hand, and i 'esting in a
bull dog and a yale lock when one is forced to employ the
faithful.

4th. For seduction no restitution need be made ; neither
for the loss of honor, since that cannot be repaired, nor for
the temporal loss which may ensue as a natural consequence.

— Gury, Compemfiuni, jj2.

5th. " On account of a grave cause it is lawful to do an
action good in itself, from which, outside the intention, the
death of an innocent person follows "

— Gury, Compendium, paoe i8<^, par, ^00,

Does not this teaching explain the othei-wise unintelli.
gible atrocities of the Romanist Spaniards who forcibly bap-
tized and then slaughtered the aboriginal inhabitants of South

and Central America, and of the European Inquisitors. The
grave cause was the saving of the red man's soul or the
stamping out of heresy. These were actions good in them-
selves— the death of the innocent victims involved was merely
an unavoidable incident — an unpleasant means tov/ards an
undeniably good end.

And let British Protestants remember that these are the
teachings of '* gentle Mother Church " to-day, zvithin their
own g^reat Empire, and teachings with which Rome is, at
this very hour, indoctrinating a large section of their fellow-
citizens and subjects.

We believe it would be well to republish the following
able editorial from The Province, July 31st, 1897, bearing
as it does on the case '' Rome vs Ruthven."

AN INTERESTING CASE.

Public opinion in Victoria has lately been considerably
exercised over the case of Mr Victor Ruthven, an ex-priest
of the Roman Catholic Church, which at one time bid fair to
attain the proportions of a cause celebre^ and may yet be pro-
ductive of sensational outcome. The facts are briefly as
follows : Mr Ruthven gave certain lectures in the A. O. U.
W. Hall which, however interesting and instructive they
might have been to Protestant minds, were unquestionably
of a nature to arouse the hostility of members of the Church
of Rome. As a consequence information was laid by one
Joseph Hall, a Roman Catholic charging Victor M. Ruthven
with the public sale and utterance of a certain indecent and
obsene book called " Crimes of Romish Priests. " " Thereby
tending to corrupt the morals as well as youth as of other
liege subjects of our Lady the Queen, and against the peace

of our said Lady the Queen Her Crown and dignity. ''
Warrants were issued for Mr Ruthven's arrest and the seizure
of the books in his possession. The case commenced on
Thursday last week, at the Victoria Police Court, Mr.
Gordon Hunter and Mr. S. P. Mills appearing for the
prosecution, Mr. Archer Martin for the defence.

It was apparent from the expression of approval at
inter\'als in court, dispite Magistrare McCrae's repeated
warnings, that public feeling ran high and unusual interest,
as is inevitably the case in matters involving religious con-
troversy, had been aroused. Witnesses for the prosecution
were brought to prove the public sale of the alleged obscene
pamphlet in the defendants private room (bedroom) at the
Victoria Hotel and nothing whatever transpired until Mr.
Martin began his cross-examination to show that any motive
animated the prosecutors save a sincere desire to vindicate
aspersions upon the character of the Roman Catholic priest-
hood. But cross-examination in the hands of a skillful
lawyer is a wonderful " eye opener. " Little by little in-
formation was e\ olved which threw new light upon the pro-
ceedings. One by one the witnesses who had evinced such
. praiseworthy zeal for the protection of public morals were
traced to the same source. They came from it prior to the
purchase of the book, they returned to it subsequent to the
purchase of the book. That source was Father Nicolayc,
•'the same Father Nicolaye who had issued a writ against
the defendant Mr. Victor M. Ruthven for criminal libel. "

The inference is certainly peculiar. But that is not all,
Mr. Martin again in cross-examination elicited the interesting
fact from Police Sergeant Walker that the arrest of the
defendant was postponed from eight o'clock -ne evening
until ten o'clock the next morning, by in.structions from Mr.

S. Perry Mills, Solicitor for the prosecution, (who had the
warrant in his pocket) in order to give the defendant, after
the seizure of the books, time to evade the law by taking his
departure either by the train for Nanaimo which left at eight,
or by the boat for the Sound which left at half-past Thi*
inference is even more peculiar, and constitutes such a truly
remarkable phase of the question that we have probably not
heard the last of it.

Counsel for the defence, who, it must be admitted, hand-
led his case in a masterly style from start to finish, demon-
strated to the satisfaction of the magistrate, by comparison
with standard literarj- works, that the book was not obscene
and the charge finally was dismissed, The decision was re-
ceived with applause by the crowd, who gave three cheers for
" Father Ruthven " as he emerged from the Court.

Thus ended one of the most interesting cases ever held
in Victoria before a stipendiary magistrate and it is certainly
worthy of a word or two of comment. Wc desire it to be
distinctly understood that The Province has no sympathy
with any public utterance or publication which tends to disturb
the peace or stir up strife between members of different
religious denominations. We do not see upon what grounds
any man can consider it justifiable, in the exercise of what
may be his legal rights, to embark upon a course of which he
cannot possibly sec the end and which may lead to con-
sequences of extremely regrettable nature; On the other
hand it is only fair to bear in mind that in this instance the
pamphlet complained of wis itself a reply by the editor of
IJght, a San Francisco paper, to an attack which had been
made by the Monitor, a Roman Catholic publication edited
by Father Yorke (brother-in-law of Chief Justice Davie, ?s
transpired in evidence) upon the character of Mr. Ruthven,

whom it described as "only a weed cast from the Pope's
garden, " and may therefore be regarded in the light of a
rataliatory measure.

Mr. Ruthven is here to-day and may be gone to-morrow,
and such denunciations as he has seen fit to make against the
religious body of 'vhich he once formed part, whether sup-
ported by evidence or not, will probably be largely evanescent
in effect upon the vas<- majority of our citizens. Hut Father
Nicolaye and Mr. S. Perry Mills are with us always as
prominent members of the community, and their share in the
proceedings is not likely soon to be forgotten.

By way of comment on the statement: '* as for the sisters,
those angels on earth, words cannot express our love and
admiration for them," in the let'er of S. Perry Mills, quoted
above, we publish the following from the " Citizen l^oston
Mass, U. S. A.July 3rd, 1897:

HORRIBLE CASK IN BUFFALO, N. Y.

The Buffalo, N. Y., Evening Times of June 14, contained
,the following terrible story: —

" Coroner Tucker had his official attentio". called this
morning to the death of Teresa Carlow on June 3rd at the
Providence Retreat, the insane hospital conducted by the
sisters of charity at Main St. and Humboldt Parkway.

'* It is a highly sensational case, and Coroner Tucker will
investigate it. The leading facts are already well known,
and to-day were generally discussed in the City Hall.

''Teresa Carlow was a beautiful girl. Insanity apparently
increased her physical loveliness. She was a celebrated

patient at the Providence Retreat, where she has been kept in
close confinement for four years. Rumors that a patient of,
superfine beauty was immured in the Retreat often reached
the outside world. To alienists her case was particularly-
interesting. Doctors from other institutions came to see her,
and attendants in fiVil institutions discussed the reports they
had heard of the handsome lunatic whose eyes were lit by the
fire of madness instead of love.

"On June 3rd Teresa Carlow died. Not until June loth
was her death certificate filed by Dr. Wood^^ who has charge
of the Retreat. Why was this delay of seven days?

" The answer lies in the cause of death which, in the delay-
ed certificate'is given as follows: — ,,

^^ Hemorrhage foUoTving child-birth.^

*' The certificate is signed by Dr. Wood, and did not have
the O. K. of either coroner.

" These four words set the regi. r to thinking of strange
crimes. He showed the certificate to others. They were
amazed. . .

" It was shown to Coroner Tucker to-day, and he resolved
to investigate..

" Dr. Wood refused to be questioned by a Times reporter,
saying that the case was a ' mystery which he could not
fathom.' He had no idea who was the father of the child^
which was born dead. Kvery one at the hospital was equally
mysterious. All seemed oppressed with an air of somber
silence.

" Teresa Cr.rlow was twenty-six years old. The death cer-
tiricate says she was illegitimate. She was buried in Holy
<"ro9s Cemetary. The officials at the Retreat positively re-
fuse to show her record o'n the books or to tell where she came
from or who her parents arc."

The above story made a great sensation, and the next day
this note appeared in the same paper : —

"Teresa Carlow, the young woman who died at the F evid-
ence Retreat Jund 3rd, was apparently without ah or
friends (if any description, except that provided by the ^jood
sisters in charge of this well-known charitable institution.

•' For many years the sisters had extended their protection
to the unfortunate young woman. Snirr May /, rS^6, sfie
had been ghcn a limilcd amount of parole.

** Dr. Wood, the physician in charge of the Retreat, full-
filled every requirement of the law in filing the death cer-
tificate, and theft certainly was nothing in connection with
the young woman, s death which in any way reflected upoi*!
him or the Providence Retreat."

Those who know state that the girl had not been outside of
the convent for four years, and that nobody was admitted
except priests.

And the following from the Victoria, B. C. Daily Times,
Tuesday June 29th, 1897:

TERRIBLE SCANDAL IN ITALY.

Among the many painful exposures involving persons of
high stand ng in France, Italy rnd elsewhere, none have
approached the terrible charge rgainst the managers of the

Hospital oj the Auuumiato of jVaples. This is an institution
in which new-born infants are supposed to be taken in and
cared for. I f these charges are even remotely true, at this
hospital matters must be infinitely worse than at some of the
so-called b»l^y farms in this country. The hpspital is said to
have, an ^nnu^l income of 568,000 lire, ^nd it is alleged that
of 85.6 infants received there in 1895, only three survived at
the end of 1896, of w loqi two have since 4icd. It, is al.so
asserted that there are now only twenty children of less than
seven years of age alive, put of the many thousands who
should hive attained that age, if properly cared for.

Surely, so terrible an indictment was never before brought
against any public or semi-public institution, and it may be
hoped that the enquiry the Marchese di Rudini has promised
shall be held will show that it grossly exaggerates. But even
allowing for this, it can hardlj' be doubted that there must
have been terrible mismanagement, if not worse, at the
hospital, at the head of which is a Deputy of the Chamber,
with another Deputy as assistant managei^. It is difficult to
understand how the alleged things can have gone on yeiu*
after year, without being long ago brought to light. It is
inconceivable that a mortality of over eight hundred and fifty
infants a year could have passed unnoticed. The persons
charged with the burial of these infants, their mothers, the
clergy and others must have surely been cognizant of the
state of affairs, and rumors must have got about that should
have reached the ears of the authorities long ago. — London
Standard.

Together with its sequel from the Citizen, Boston, Mass.
S. A. July 24th, 1897 :

5°
AN INCREDIBLE SCANDAL.

Under the above heading, the London Lancet, a medical
journal of world wide fame, publishes ihe following, from its
correspondent at Rome : —

The Commission of Inqviiry (which) has recently re-
ported to the Ch iber of Deputies on the " fattt dolorosi,
€normi, incredibili " (sad, hideous, incredible factO revealed
in the administration of the Foundling Hospital it Naples.

This Hospital, (or "BretfotroHo," as it is called,) is, I
am sorry to say, a '. pecimen — though an exceptionall)' ghastly
one — of the many institutions of the kind established in the
great centres of popniation wJiere the large celibate com-
munities of both sexes, accommodated in religious houses, arc
(he cause oj ^legitimacy on an enormous scale, the Iiapless oj^-
skoots of ,vhich find their zvay as foundlings iiito the said
hospitals, luhere, if they are not ** killed out rig ''/," thev can
hardly be meant to live. The mortality thus occasioned
has long been a scandal, though it has seldom, if ever, attained
the total given by the Commission of inquiry in its report on
the Neapolitan "Brefotrofio." In the last two statistical years
the foundlings admitted into that insti*^ution were eight hun-
dred and fifty -six, and their deaths at the close of 1896 — the
second of those two years — amounted tc eight hundred and
fifty three. I In other words, the survivors of the "system "
were, all told, three !

That sotTicthing hideously wrong prevailed throughout the
managcmant nf the "Breic^rofio" as a whole had long been
more than suspected. The "corposanitario" (sanitar}- authori-
ties) of Naples made repeated attempts to get at the truths
officially veiled but all in vain. There was reason to know

that every hygenic law in the institution nas '' honored in
the breach," not "in the observance;" that the dorruatories were
positively foul with untidiness and neglect ; that the manage-
ment made absolutely no provision for " sale d'isolamento "
(isolation rooms) on the frequent outbreak of infectious or con-
tagious disease, //fnf no addition zvas nuu''' to the wet-nurse
service when thejoundlings zvere admiited in larii'er numbers. ;
that for instance, one nurse zvcis allozued to o-ire the breast to as
many as four in/ants per diem ; that the hot water boiler was
unknown in the building; and that the l>ahy linen zvas asjilthy
as it zvas deficient, seldom renezved, and sti/I more seldom
ziashe. Nor is this all. The Commission of Inquiry reports
ihat the milk (cows or goat's) was never sterilized; that the feed-
ing-bottles were never disinfected, and that a stop was put to
the dispensary from which medicines and sick-room neces-
saries were gratuitously supplied to the out-door nursing ser-
vice. Worse still remains to be told. In order to relieve the
institution of its tiny inmates — as if death did not complete
its task quickly enough — the management (so says the report)
trumpted up against those of them who had reached seven
years of age.charges of nsubordination or other offenses grave
enough to relegate the^n to houses of correction I Tlvjs com-
ments the Cavaliere I errone, chairman of the Commission, by
condemning the child to associate w ith young thieves and law-
breakers recruited from the worst classes, you bring about his
'• civil death, ' in the rare everst of his having succeeded in
escaping '' natural death. "

And so, from the first page to the last, the Report ac-
cumulates proof upon proof of crinnnal violation of all tl-.e
rules that ought to control such insti*-".tions, while the debate
it awoke in the Chamber of deputies on the 2nd inst. — a de-
hate headed in the Parliamentary reports, "Gli Orrori del

Brefotrcfio di Napoli " (The Horrors of the Naples Foundling
Hospital) — drew from several speakers the demand that the
administrators should be prosecuted to conviction.

Thise " Functionaries" have all resigned, and the Min-
ister of Grace and Justice has undertaken that they and their
conduct shall come before the tribunals. "

And the following from a press ui3patch publisl^ed in the
Courier, Buffalo, N. Y., U.S. A., May 25th, 1894:

'^ At Chicago, May 24th, 1894. Attor.iey-general Moloney
filed a bill in the circuit court to recove property valued at
$500,000 from the mother superior of the servites sisters of
mercy in that city, the bill also charges that the mother
superior's immorality has become a public scandal."

We might also refer to the hideous disclosures made but a
few months since concerning tho "Girls Directory," an in-
stitution run by the sisters of St. Francis in San Fraiicisco,
Cal.

'^ Angels on earth " may these sisters be, but scmtjc of them
are evidently a little off color, but in justice to S. Perry
Mills, we must remember that there are white angels, and
there are black ; angels who surround the Almighty's throne,
and angels who have fallen to the depths beneath, and he has
not indicated the present complexion or the future location of
" the Sisters — those angels on earth "

In closing we might say that Mr. Ruthven has hired the
A. O. U. W. Hall for an indefinite period, Jand delivers a
patriotic, anti-Romish lecture every Sunday evening. The
following card is handed to eac> visitor as he enters the hall.

Believing you to be " A FRIEND OF LIBERTY •>
LOVER OF BRITISH FAIR PLAY," we extend' to
you a cordial invitation to be present at our Patriotic Sunday
Service. Rev. V. M. Ruthven, (Ex-Priest of Rome/, will
deliver a popular lecture on the Romish Question. When it
i^-Next Sunday Evening at 8 oclock. Where it is-A. O
U. W. Hall, Yates Street, Victoria. B. C. What it is-An"
Honest and Fearless Exposure of the Destructive Doctrines
and the Atrocious Practices of the Church of Rome. Come
and bring a friend. Silver collection to pay necessary
expenses. '

PATRIOTISM.

Where'er Oiir Gracious Queen loth Beign.

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